Throughout its 44-year history, Elmira Community Kitchen has helped local residents weather many poverty-related storms.
The past few months have been no exception, with kitchen patrons facing inflation, uncertainty over government funding and other financial challenges.
“It’s kind of hard for them to know what each day is going to bring, Not having any idea is very scary,” remarked Katie Rhodes, development and marketing coordinator for Catholic Charities of Chemung/Schuyler, which oversees the kitchen.
Heightened need is reflected in the numbers of recent kitchen visits. According to Rhodes and Kathy Dubel, longtime director of the kitchen, the facility served 1,705 meals in August 2025; that figure increased to 1,775 in September, 1,945 in October and 1,858 in November.
Dubel said such rising demand can make it financially daunting for the ministry to keep pace: “We don’t really get big grants,” she said.
Yet Dubel and Rhodes said the kitchen always rises to the occasion, thanks in large part to support from donors — including proceeds from the Catholic Courier/Catholic Charities Christmas Appeal.
“The Christmas Appeal is just such a huge blessing to the community kitchen, especially now with the increasing numbers of people,” Rhodes said.
Community kitchen in Chemung County serves lunch to high number of impoverished residents
Elmira Community Kitchen is located at 160 High St., near St. Joseph’s Hospital on the city’s east side. It is open every Monday through Friday — as well as the last Saturday of the month — beginning at 11 a.m., with lunch served from 11:30 to 12:30 p.m. In addition, the kitchen puts on special meals from 1 to 2 p.m. on Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter.
The ministry is supported by both cash and food donations, as well as a deep pool of volunteers from local faith communities and other organizations who prepare and serve meals. The facility can seat approximately 125 individuals and families, often operating at or near capacity.
Dubel noted that Elmira Community Kitchen is located in a high-poverty area of Chemung County. Guests encompass people of all ages, including those who are homeless and/or unemployed. Dubel added that “even people who are working” come for meals because their income can’t keep pace with rising costs fueled by inflation.
Elmira kitchen director calls funding cuts, restrictions for poor and homeless ‘sort of frightening’
Adding to the patrons’ financial challenges was the withholding of federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funding during the 43-day government shutdown that ended Nov. 12. Although SNAP benefits have since been restored, the shutdown caused delays in payments as well as uncertainty about when and if SNAP would continue.
“People were really worried, not knowing what was going to happen,” Rhodes said. “They’re already struggling, barely getting by, and you’re taking away the thing that’s helping them get by.”
Dubel said that “we saw people come to the kitchen we had not seen before” during the shutdown, and that she overheard many concerns related to the SNAP crisis. She singled out one woman who often skips dinner so her children have enough to eat — even when she’s getting SNAP payments — as well as another woman “who just started to weep; she couldn’t think of losing those SNAP dollars as little as they are.”
Dubel added that recent federal funding cuts, along with the tightening of eligibility restrictions for programs such as SNAP, stand to further impact the poor and homeless: “It’s sort of frightening that there would be such ignorance and cruelty.”
Catholic Charities agencies in Southern Tier step up to meet residents’ food insecurity needs
In the face of such difficulties, Catholic Charities plays a vital role across the Southern Tier thanks to its meal programs, food pantries and emergency services. One new effort began in December 2025, when Catholic Charities of Steuben/Livingston was due to open a new community soup kitchen in Hornell. Located at the Catholic Charities facility at 12 Allen St., the kitchen was to be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 to 6 p.m. providing free, nutritious, hot meals, primarily via takeout.
“Food insecurity is a growing challenge, and our goal is to ensure that no one in our community goes hungry,” Wendy Recktenwald, the Steuben/Livingston agency’s executive director, said in a statement. “We have watched the number of individuals who need our food pantries increase over the recent months and wanted to provide them with a hot meal option a couple of nights per week.”
A press release announcing the Hornell kitchen’s opening noted that it will strive to provide “a safe and welcoming environment for all.” In Elmira, Dubel said the community kitchen likewise is a haven for people hungering for hospitality as well as meals.
“It’s a place where people are welcome, where we know their names,” she said.
Tags: Catholic Charities, Chemung County News
